Panthers vs. Texans: First half studs and duds

Panthers vs. Texans: First half studs and duds

A new slate, one filled with a renewed sense of hope, began for the Carolina Panthers tonight. That start, luckily for head coach Ron Rivera and his squad, would turn out a 17-10 lead over the visiting Houston Texans at the half.

So who looked good and who exactly didn’t? Here are the studs and duds from the first half of the Panthers’ opening preseason contest of 2017:

Studs

WR Kelvin Benjamin

In his first taste of on-field competition following an adverse offseason, Benjamin certainly impressed.

No. 13 was dialed up on Carolina’s first play from scrimmage, hauling in a pass from Derek Anderson for a strong 17-yard gain. He’d follow that reception up with an excellent 23-yard touchdown grab to help give the Panthers a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter.

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Joining Benjamin in the paint was Byrd, who burned the Houston defense for a 50-yard score with 8:22 remaining in the half. He would finish up the half with another catch for 11 yards and also looked confident on his two punt returns which went for a combined 19 yards.

RB Christian McCaffrey

The Panthers’ eighth overall pick made his much anticipated professional debut with a solid showing. McCaffrey displayed his quickness, taking seven carries for 33 yards.

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Duds

K Graham Gano

Whether Gano really is in trouble of losing his job to rookie Harrison Butker or not, a 50-yard miss on Carolina’s opening drive certainly won’t help his case. He would, however, make good on a 45-yard try in putting the Panthers up by 10 with six minutes left in the second quarter.

Second-team defense

Even though the Texans were relatively bottled up on the scoreboard, they did begin to break through as soon as the Panthers’ starters were pulled. Houston’s pair of running backs, Alfred Blue and D’Onta Foreman, faced little resistance, combining for 60 yards and a touchdown on 10 rushing attempts.